The loss of reasonable, rational, civil discussion

It is becoming difficult to read the daily newspaper lately. The rhetoric from the extremist conservative talk show hosts is now being parrotted by some of the general public in a purely politicized effort to counter any and all efforts by President Obama to achieve constructive change, even when those efforts include an offer to adopt or incorporate the ideas previously espoused by those who are now the critics. It would be fine if those people simply wanted to engage in reasonable, rational and civil discussions about what would and wouldn't work for the various policies being discussed, but that is not what they have in mind. They are looking for sensationalized sound bites to use in launching personal attacks against the President. Ironically, this is being done as a response to the president's eloquently stated offer to listen to and utilize any of their constructive ideas to solve an agreed upon problem. Contrary to what those people would like to believe about what they are doing, that is not the democratic process on which this country was built, nor will it help in actually solving any problems. It is merely destructive, and it is always easier to destroy than to build. As stated by current philosopher and author, Lou Marinoff, in his book "The Middle Way":

"When confronted by demonstrable truths that run contrary to dogmatic beliefs, people whose power over others depends on falsehoods seem reluctanct to embrace truth; they more often attempt to throttle truth by silencing the truth tellers."